Tainted by Evil
by tilinelson2
Summary: A take on the events leading to PSIII.
1. Prologue

"_I've chosen you!"_

The cyan-haired girl had just opened her eyes. Everything was dark. She was sweating, though the climate was cold. "_That must have been a nightmare." _She turned to the other side to sleep a bit more.

"_You are mine now!"_

"_What!"_ The girl was startled by the voice. "Who is there, who is there?" The girl cringed in fear on her bed, sitting and gripping tightly her blankets. The fear made her feel completely awake.

"_Once I had Laya in my hands and we almost made it, but the damned witch betrayed me. Now it is time to come back! I've waited a thousand years, but now I'll not fail. You are my chosen one!"_

"What? Who is there? What are you talking about?" The girl's heart was racing madly. She started shivering.

"_Calm down... together we will rule this world."_

"Me?" The girl felt confused.

"_You and me! Keep quiet now, you don't need to speak, I'm inside of you."_

"Inside...?" The girl realized that the voice was coming from inside her head. She started feeling drowsy again. "_But I don't want... to rule..."_

"_Sleep, my sweet child. Sleep. Tomorrow you will have a busy day..."_


	2. The Evil Seeks Power

"_Wake up!"_

The girl woke up startled. The day was dawning, as the first rays of the morning sun invaded the bedroom through the window shutters. The girl was feeling a terrible headache and there was a strange oppressive feeling inside her chest. She left her bed and started getting ready for the day. "_I think I'm sick..." _

While the girl was bathing herself, her head swoon. She almost passed out. "_It is time to start working. You and me will rule this world together!"_

"_Oh, no, not again..."_

"_You are powerless. You are in my hands now."_

"_I thought that was just a bad nightmare..."_

"_You are under my control!"_

The girl slapped her own cheeks with strength enough to cause a good deal of pain. "Ouch!"

"_Your mind is mine now."_

"_You are scaring me! Who are you?" _The girl was rubbing her cheeks.

"_I'm the owner of your body and soul. It is useless to fight against me. You are just a vessel for me. You will end destroyed if you dare to fight against me."_

"_Leave me alone! Please!"_

"_No, it is time to act. You must be the ruler of this kingdom by the end of the day."_

"_Ruler of this kingdom? That is impossible."_

"_That is possible and you know how."_

"_No! No!" _The cyan-haired girl started crawling out of the bathtub. She tried to resist the force that made her get out of the bathtub against her own will, but she only ended hurting her limbs by hitting them on the bathtub, floor and walls. She crawled back to her bedroom, feeling a terrible headache. "_Stop! Stop! Leave me!" _Tears started flowing from her eyes. She was unable to control her movements. She had broke down in tears, but was mechanically dressing herself. She could hear an evil laughter inside her head. "_Please, leave me alone! Why did you choose me? What have I done? Oh, Laya, help me!" _The laughter didn't stop.

As she was almost ready to leave her room, she heard a light knock on the door.

"Princess, are you awake?" The woman's voice outside was shy.

"Yes." The princess' awswer was dry.

"Dear princess, will you have your breakfast here or downstairs with your dad?"

The princess didn't answer.

"Princess?"

The door was opened violently by the princess. She just grunted at the middle-aged servant, who was trying to smile at her and left her room. The middle-aged servant was confused by the princess' reaction as she was always so sweet. She scratched her silvery hair. "_What has happened with this girl? I've never seen her act that way. Well, it must be one of those womanly things..."_

The princess was already at the dining hall, seated by the table. The king arrived a short time after her and greeted her daughter warmly.

"My dear! I love when you come to have breakfast downstairs. I love your company. How are you feeling today, my dear?"

"Bad." The princess answered dryly.

"_Please! Stop! Dad! Dad! Help me! I don't know what is happening to me! I love you papa! Help me!"_

"_Shut up! Take a look to your dad. He will be dead before the sunset."_

"_No! I won't let you do that!"_

The princess' head swoon again. She fainted, falling from the chair she was seated in. The king rushed towards his daughter.

"My dear, what happened? Are you ok?"

The princess, who was just recovering her senses, felt herself free from the strange entity spell. "Oh, dad... I'm not... feeling well..."

The princess seemed to fall into a trance again. His father started shaking her weak body. "Dear, are you listening to me?"

The princess opened her eyes. "I'm feeling better."

"Don't you want me to take your to the hospital?" The king helped the princess to sit on the floor.

"No, no, I'm already feeling better." Her tone looked unnatural again. She started crawling up to the chair.

"Are you sure?" The king countenance showed genuine worry.

"Yes, just leave me quiet for some time." The princess tried to smile, but was prevented by a strange force. She was feeling under the strange entity's spell again.

"Oh, well..." The king was feeling sad, but respected her daughter will.

The breakfast was uneventful. At least it is what it looked like to the king and the servants. The princess was fighting against the evil entity inside her head. She grinned at the sight of a long knife. She kept staring at the knife and at her father during the whole breakfast. "_Kill him! Kill him! Kill him!" _The evil entity's voice echoed inside the princess head, making her feel desperate. "_Leave me alone! Leave me alone! Laya, help me!"._

After the breakfast, the princess left without saying a word. The evil entity took her straight to a large weapon cabinet in one of the many palace halls, which displayed some swords and spears. The princess tried to open the cabinet, but there was a large lock preventing its door from being opened. The princess started shaking the cabinet like mad. "_Get a sword and kill your father! You must do it now! Now!" _The princess kept shaking the cabinet, attracting the attention of the servants. The servants were scared by the princess' behavior and went after the king, seeking help. As the king arrived, he was shocked by the behavior of his daughter.

"What do you want, my love?" The king touched the princess' shoulder lightly

"Eek!" The princess shrieked at the touch of her father's hand.

"Dear?" The king was really scared.

"Damn!" The princess released the cabinet and walked away.

"Marlena! Come back!" The king was shaking his arms in despair. "What has happened to my daughter?" He bowed his head in frustration and worry.

"_Stop! I'll never kill my father! Stop doing that to me!"_

"_You will kill him, that is not under discussion. You will be the queen and we will rule this kingdom together."_

"_Leave me! I'll not rule anything! I'd rather die than let that happen!"_

"_You can't fight against me!"_

Against her own will, the princess dragged herself to the kitchen. Her soul was fighting the evil influence, but she could feel the evil entity overpowering her. Though she was not physically crying, her soul was crying out all her anguish and pain. "_I've always tried to be a good girl and now that. I can't believe that this is happening to me. Why me? Oh Laya, help me!"_

"_Laya couldn't save herself. She will not be able to save you."_

"_Leave me, please!"_

"_Why do you fight me? Help me and you will have all the world under your feet."_

"_No! I'll never help you with your filthy plans! I'll never do anything evil! You've chosen the wrong person! Leave me alone, please!"_

"_You are the perfect person, Layan princess..."_

The princess reached the kitchen. Her presence was unusual at the kitchen, so the servants were a bit worried at first, but as the princess didn't say a word, they resumed their work. The princess seemed to be looking for something. She examined the cabinets, shelves, but didn't find what she was looking for.

"_Damn! Isn't there a knife here? A good knife?"_

"_Knife?"_

"_Yes, a knife, stupid girl! To kill your dad!"_

"_Please..."_

"_You must kill your dad and you will kill your dad!"_

"_Leave me..."_

The princess entered the storage room. There were many kitchen hardware scattered all around. She didn't want to enter the storage room because she knew she would find the knife the evil entity was looking for, but as much as she tried, she was powerless to stop the evil entity. The evil entity had control of almost all her body. The evil entity rejoiced when she found a large knife, sharp enough to kill a man with one stab at the heart. The princess grinned, but her soul was crying. She was desperate. She couldn't believe something like that was happening to her. And the worst was to think that she was unable to stop that evil force.

The princess left the storage room with a big knife on her hands. Though one or two of the servants saw the princess walking through the kitchen with the large knife on her hand, her sweet and innocent air made them comfortable with the sight. They were sure she wanted the knife for something trivial and not dangerous at all.

"_Let's kill your father now! Once you taste the sweet taste of blood, you will be yearning for more. Together, we will shed blood enough to paint the seas red!"_

"_You are sick, your evilness is disgusting! I'll not do that. I'd rather die than to do what you have in your evil mind."_

"_Don't worry, after I use you, I'll make your dying wish come true."_

"_Gaahhhh! Why do you take pleasure in torturing myself? Who are you?"_

"_I'm the source of all evil! I'm the pure expression of evil! No one can stop me! Surrender now!"_

"_Never! Never!"_

The princess hesitantly advanced towards her father's office, where she knew he would be. The princess struggled against the evil entity, trying to regain the control of her body, but she was successful for short instants only, slowing her advance towards the evil entity's destination. The evil entity overpowered her and kept dragging her towards her father.

"_You will kill him now! Now, stupid girl! Do you understand? Now!"_

"_No! I won't do it! Never! I'll kill myself before that happens!" _The princess' soul felt a deep sorrow.

"_You are powerless! And even if you commit suicide, it won't be long till I possess someone else's body. You are powerless to stop me. You can only choose between helping me achieving my goals or watching me destroy your world and the entire universe afterwards. Your soul will end being dragged into the chaos. You are doomed to live your eternity inside the evil. Your soul will be tortured every day. And I'll take pleasure in specially torturing you for disobeying me."_

"_There must be a way out! Laya, help me!"_

"_There is no way out. Either you surrender and I'll treat you well or you try to fight me and you will be doomed to the eternal pain."_

"Ahhhhh!"

The princess released a loud scream of pain. She had her left hand squeezing the blade of the long knife. The pain made her release the knife, which fell on the floor. The evil entity was surprised by the princess' reaction and lost the control of her for some moments. The princess ran like mad, with her hand dripping blood.

The king was startled by scream. He knew the scream was her daughter's. He immediately left the documents he was reading and ran to the door. He opened the door and saw the bloodied knife and the drops of blood forming a trail. He became desperate and called his guards to help him to find the princess. He feared someone had kidnapped her.

Meanwhile, the princess had a short lead. She left the palace through the back door and started running through the streets. Though she attracted the attention of some passersby, they didn't care too much about the scene, though they knew she was the princess. The princess took a path by the castle walls, which was usually deserted. The princess moved quickly towards the castle gates. Her bloodied hand started dripping less blood as the blood started coagulating, so the blood trail was now almost invisible.

The princess reached the castle gates. There were just two guards by the castle gates. They were chatting. The princess sneaked out of castle without being seem by the lazy guards. She resumed running through the plains, in direction of the woods.

After some minutes, the guards were surprised confused by the sudden presence of the king and his guards. The king was furious. He asked the guards whether they have seen the princess of not. Both guards denied.

"Fools! If I discover that someone has kidnapped my daughter and successfully left the castle, you two will be thrown in the dungeon." The kings eyes were on fire and his movements showed he would do what he said.

"Oh... we... are sure... my lord..." The guards were trembling with fear.

"Well, if my daughter has not left the castle, we will find her sooner or later. Let's start looking for her. I don't want any corner of this whole city left unchecked. She must be somewhere. She is hurt. She must be found!"

The search was futile. For many days, guards and volunteers looked for the princess in every corner of the town, but they didn't find her. They looked for her even in the most stupid places, but she was nowhere to be found. The king started suspecting she had left the castle, but after some days of absence, it would be impossible to track her down. The king, then, put the city under martial law and mourned the loss of his daughter. Though he had lost his hopes, he secretly set up a small detachment to try to find the princess wherever she was. He was almost sure she had been kidnapped and he grieved to think she could have been taken into captivity, raped or even murdered. The testimony of some citizens, though, contradicted his views, as they stated they have seen a girl running through the streets alone. Confused, they king spent his nights awake, grieving. "_Oh, my beloved! Why did you do that to your father?"_

As for the princess, as soon as she had left the castle, she hid herself in the woods. She was feeling weak by the blood loss and tired for running. She sat on the grass, crying. She could still feel the evil presence inside her, the same oppressive feeling inside her chest.

"_Damn! Witch! What have you done? You ruined everything!"_

"_I can't... I just can't... kill my father..."_

"_So I'll have to kill you, your useless witch!"_

"_I... don't... care..."_

The princess started feeling a sharp pain on her chest, as if she was suffering a cardiac arrest. Breathing became difficult and the princess was almost passing out. She realized the evil force was trying to kill her, but she preferred to die than to kill someone else. "_Oh, Laya, if there is a way, save me from this evil force. If there is not, well, at least I have abode to your laws..." _

The pain suddenly was gone. The princess regained her senses. She sighed in relief. For a moment she believed the evil presence had disappeared, but soon she noticed that it was not the case. The evil entity was laughing inside her head. "_I have a plan for you. You still can help me. We will be traveling. Just come with me."_

The strength of the evil entity started dragging the princess through the forest, against her will. The princess felt despair again. "_Oh, Laya, help me! Help me! Do not forsake this poor daughter of yours! Don't let me be the vehicle for all this evil! Help me!"_ The evil entity laughed at the princess' despair. Her prayers went unanswered.


	3. The Evil Seeks Hatred

The princess walked through the forest, unwillingly. She was being dragged by the evil entity who had possessed her body. She was just a passenger inside her own body. The evil entity was directing her movements. The princess was suffering a great deal because she feared what the evil entity was up to. "_If it didn´t kill me, that means it is up to something worse than killing me. Luckily I could spare my dad's life. I just hope I don´t have to kill anybody else."_

"_Kill! Destruction! Suffering! Oh, how I rejoice at hearing such words! You are giving me some good ideas, girl! I think you can be a suitable partner for me... But you deserve death for not obeying me."_

"_Why don´t you leave me alone if I´m useless for you?"_

"_I may forgive you, but you must survive my ordeal."_

"_I don´t want you forgiveness. All I want is that you stop using me and leave me alone."_

"_That will happen only on an appropriate time."_

After walking some miles, the princess left the small forest. From there, the princess walked straight to the shore. Arriving there, it was like a dead end. There was nowhere to go. The sea had covered the sandbank which used to connect their island to the southern continent.

The princess was feeling depressed. She was unable to do anything against the evil force. She had to wait the evil force to decide which step they would take next. Although her soul tried very hard to recover the control of her body, the evil entity was stronger. Not only the evil entity countered all the princess moves but it also mocked the girl constantly, trying to inspire hatred on her.

"_Do you like flying, princess? Or do you prefer walking on the water? Underwater, maybe? I can do anything for you. But I have better things in my mind. Things that will leave me pleased. Things that will satisfy my thirst for blood."_

The laughter inside the princess mind was deafening. The princess tried to forget about the evil force for some moments, but she was unable to do so. The presence of the evil entity was so overwhelming that it confused even the princess' own thoughts. Her soul was crying desperately for help. A help that would never come. She had to fight the evil entity alone.

After some minutes waiting, a small sailboat appeared in the horizon. The princess was surprised to see a sailboat risking itself in those waters on winter, but deep inside she knew that it should be one of the evil force doings, so she only felt more depressed. The boat slowly sailed closer and closer to the shore, until it was close enough to allow its sailor to disembark. Then, it was anchored. A small wooden vessel was laid on the water. Two sailors left the sailboat, entered the wooden vessel and rowed to the shore.

"_Now it is time to have some fun!" _The evil entity made the princess grin.

But the princess was feeling terrible. She felt an extreme disgust at the dark humor attempts by the evil entity. She knew the evil entity was up to something really mean and that her body would be used as the vehicle for its mean actions. She fought hard against the evil force to not lose the entire control of her body, but the best she managed was to slow her movements a bit. Besides the fear, she was hopeless. _"I've become a slave of this evil entity. Not in my worst nightmares I thought something like that was possible." _Her soul was desperate, but the princess gaze was a calm one, as her body reflected more the will of the evil entity than her own will.

"_Time to kill, princess."_

"_No!"_

"_But they are filthy Orakians. Don't you hate them?"_

"_No. I don't even know them."_

"_They were the ones responsible for Laya's death. You should hate them. You must hate them. Kill them!"_

"_I don't hate them..."_

"_They are mean, really mean."_

"_Still, I don't hate them."_

"_Damn! You have to hate them! I rejoice at your hate! Kill them now!"_

"_Please, listen to me. I don't want to kill anyone. I'm unable to do that. Please, release me from your control. Find someone who is willing to help you. I just can't stand suffering anymore."_

"_Oh, so you want to defy my orders. Very well, then. Remember that I have control over you. Don't you think those sailors are hungry for a pretty woman like you?"_

"_No! Please, don't do that to me!"_

The evil entity burst in laughter as she felt the despair in the princess soul.

"_Wouldn't you hate them?" _The evil entity always rejoiced when it talked about hate.

"_No, they would be blameless victims of your evil doings, like me."_

"_So let's make them do some blameless acts with you."_

"_No, please, don't to that to me."_

"_How you humans are foolish! That is why I loathe you all! Why are you desperate? What would that change?"_

"_Please, I can't even stand the thought..."_

"_Fools! I hate you all! Well, I've changed my mind. I don't care for your stupid human values such as morals, modesty. What are they worth? Chastity? The most stupid thing I've ever heard. I only care for your hatred, your anger, your envy, your greed and your pain. I rejoice with your deaths, specially the painful ones. Your anger and hatred feed me, they make me stronger. The rest, I abhor. Your puny species doesn't deserve to keep polluting the universe. Let's do something better than that. Something to quench my thirst."_

"_No! No! Leave me alone!"_

The princess was in despair, as she felt her body being dragged towards the sailors. She knew the evil entity meant some harm to the sailors. The sailors were disembarking from the wooden vessel and they noticed the young woman's presence. One of the sailors turned to her and smiled, waving at her in a friendly way. His friendly approach was met with a serious countenance. The princess was walking fast towards the man, deeply staring at his eyes. She raised her right arm and a sudden energy wave erupted from the palm of her right hand directed to the sailor.

"Die!" The princess voice was hoarse, nothing like her usual voice.

The energy wave hit the man in the chest, making him immediately collapse. The other man ran away to the woods, scared.

"_What have your done? What have you done?" _The princess was bursting in tears.

"_Look what you have done, princess! How majestic! You had just killed a man! Look at that other fool, who is running for his life. That is so funny. Don't you love it?"_

The laughter inside the princess mind was too much for her. Gathering her last strength, she freed herself from the evil entity's control and ran towards the sailor she had just hit. _"Oh, no, I must save him. He doesn't deserve to die. Poor man... what have I done? It doesn' t matter that he is an Orakian. Laya, grant me your power! Let me heal him, please! Don't fail on me, Laya, I need to save this innocent life..."_

The princess had her hand over the sailor's forehead. Tears started flowing from the princess' eyes, rolling down her cheeks and finally falling on the sailor's face. As a Layan, she had inherited the mysterious powers of using techniques, though she had never used it herself. She didn' t even know what kind of techniques she was able to use, so she prayed to Laya, hoping she had inherited her late mother's healing techniques. An invisible aura engulfed the sailor and he started breathing again. After some minutes more, he opened his eyes and, scared by the sight of the woman who had attacked him laying over him, he rolled in the sand and started fleeing toward the woods.

"Your Layan witch! You are trying to suck my soul out of my body!"

"No! Come back!" The princess cried in despair. "I was healing you..."

"Healing, eh? You tried to kill me!" The man was crawling in the sand, trying to run away.

"_Sucking his soul out of his body? What a great idea!"_

"_No! I won't let you do that!"_

"Run away!" The princess shouted to the fleeing man. "Run for your life!"

The princess knew that the evil entity meant to do harm to the man, so he would be safer it he was far from her. _"What have I become? People are only safe if they are far from me. I've become a doom bringer. The death itself." _The princess soul was crying so much that even her body started crying. The sailor was confused by the girl's actions and kept running away from her.

"_How you dare to defy my orders? Do you think you are powerful enough? You are out of your mind!"_

"_I may not be powerful enough, but I'll die trying... to... stop... you."_

The princess was struggling against the evil entity and, though the evil force overpowered the girl, she was able to delay the evil entity's actions, hoping that the sailor would have time to flee into safety. The princess slowly raised her right arm again, aiming at the sailor. Because of the princess' own resistance, her arm was shaking. The sailor was almost in the woods when the evil entity managed to release another energy wave through the princess body. The princess, though, managed to change the direction of the ray, which missed the sailor by just a few inches. The energy ray hit a tree and the tree immediately withered.

As the sailor disappeared in the woods, the princess felt a sense of relief. She let her body fall on the sand. For some seconds, it was as if she had defeated the evil entity who possessed her, but she was not fooled by the entity's brief disappearing. She knew it would strike back with full force. _"But, at least, that man was not killed. I wouldn't be able to live knowing I had caused the death of an innocent man. Thanks, Laya."_

It didn't take long before the evil entity made its presence known. _"Damned princess! Do you think that will go unpunished? You will pay for disobeying me. You will regret having saved that man!"_

The princess, though, was calm. She was tired of trying to argue with the evil entity, as the entity would never listen to her reasoning. Her soul was in peace. _"It doesn't matter what she does to me, I'll never regret saving that man."_

The evil entity dragged the princess body inside the small wooden vessel. The princess rowed to the sailboat and embarked it. She was alone inside the sailboat and she had no knowledge of how to sail it. Even so, the ship started moving automatically, as the evil entity made an unnatural wind blow the sail to its intended direction..

When the ship was moving in a steady pace to its destination, known only to the evil entity, the princess, led by the evil entity's will, tied a hope around her own ankles. The evil entity had regained full control of the princess body, so all her actions were planned by the evil entity. The princess herself was puzzled, she had no idea of what the evil entity was up to. The princess tied the rope to one of the masts, calculating the length of the rope, walked to the deck and, from there, suddenly jumped overboard.

"_Woman overboard! Do you like it? Now you will face the consequences of your smart acts."_

The princess was drowning, with the rope carefully measured to leave her head underwater and her body out of the water. As the ship was sailing fast, the contact of the water with her skin was like hundreds of razors cutting it at once. The princess was feeling great pains and she started losing her breath. After two minutes, the rope was mysteriously pulled, taking the princess from the water. The princess was desperately gasping for some air.

"_Did you like it, dear princess? Did you like it? This is what you get for disobeying me, princess."_

"_But..."_

The rope was released again. The princess almost drowned and her skin was further damaged by the water hitting her. To make matters worse, the salty water on her wounds increased the pain felt by the princess. The evil entity rejoiced to see the princess in pain. It kept laughing inside the princess head. Though the evil entity controlled the princess movements, it was the princess soul which felt all the pain. The mix of pain, fear and the proximity to death made it difficult for the princess to think. The evil entity pulled the rope again.

"_Better get used to that, my dear princess. I will show you no mercy."_

The evil entity released the rope one more time. And it repeated the same thing as before. For hours. The evil entity kept repeating the cycle of almost drowning the princess and pulling her back. After some time, the princess was unable to react even if she wanted to. The exposure to the sun, the long periods without breathing and the blood loss made the princess hallucinate and pass out eventually. She had lost the sense of direction, the sense of time. She didn't even know where she was or who she was. She only felt pain, pain and more pain.

Sometime after the sunset, the princess regained her conscience for a brief moment. She was hanging upside down by the boat's side. A light breeze was blowing. The breeze was refreshing, easing a bit the bit pains the princess was feeling. The princess vision was blurred. She was not hearing properly as well. The hours hanging upside down and the privation of air had damaged her brain, eyes and ears. Even so, she noticed that she had the control of her body again. The evil entity apparently was tired of torturing her and left her.

The princess tried to climb up the rope, but that was almost an inhuman task. She was naturally a weak person, so she would hardly be able to climb the rope if she was in a good shape. As she was wounded, with her brain damaged, the task was almost impossible. But, as staying there meant death, she had to try. She tried to catch the rope, but she couldn't even reach her knees, so weak she was. She then tried a different solution. She started pulling the ship hull. Her body, tied by her ankles, started to swing as a pendulum. She used the momentum generated to pull it strongly each time. Each time, her body would describe a broader arc. After many minutes of this painful task, she felt that she had a chance if she stretched her arms and tried to hold her hands on the deck. She tried it many times, but she was unable to get a strong hold on the deck. It was too painful. She kept on trying, till once she had a strong hold. Even so, it took her many minutes to finally pull herself inside the boat, as she was not strong enough to do that with ease.

The princess was lying on the deck, facing the sky. Her blurred vision was staring at the stars. Her head swoon, as she was very weak and her brain was damaged. Her thoughts were a mix of introspection and hallucinations.

"_Peace! Peace! How I longed for it! It feels like I´m sailing through the stars... the stars... the heaven... oh Laya, thank Laya for this peace... Laya... Laya... the stars... there must be... must be something else... all those stars... each one with its planets... there must be something else... something greater than holy Laya... oh Laya... Somewhere were there is no evil... something more powerful than this evil force... we are humans... powerless... but... we can do it... all I want... peace... all I want is to live a life of peace... sailing through the stars... we want to be happy... we want to feel comfortable... we should be able to make it... no more hatred... Oh Laya... no more violence... no angst... only peace... sailing through the stars... on the way to a smile... to a warm embrace... to a lovely look in one's eyes... to our peace of mind... to love... Somewhere... the evil doesn't exist... loving and being loved... all the minds and hearts... together... singing in unison... singing the heavenly song of love... bound for infinity... bound for eternity..._

The princess passed out. While she was sleeping, she involuntarily cast healing spells on herself, healing herself from her most serious wounds. She was allowed to sleep for some hours in peace, recovering from the terrible ordeal she had suffered. The evil entity stayed near her. The evil entity still hated the princess and wanted to do her harm. But the princess earned the respect of the evil entity.

"_Damned girl! If all this torture couldn't break her, that means she is a formidable. Too formidable for a human. What a strength she has! For the kind of girl she is, I'd never expect that. It is a pity she insists in being a good and fair person. If only I could nurture hatred on her, she would be my perfect companion. Well, I just need to make her pull that sword... that sword... to break the seal..."_


	4. The Evil Seeks Freedom

The warm rays of the sun were warming the princess body. The sky was clear, the climate was cool. It was almost comfortable to be sleeping on the hard wooden deck. For the princess, the feeling of comfort was even higher. She had had a peaceful night, free from the evil entity's influence.

She dreamt she was in an unknown world where people lived in peace. She lived in a strange house, with other three unknown women. There was no noticeable evil in that world. People were usually happy. They respected each other, they helped the others to achieve common goals. People were honest, just, sincere and altruistic. People were good-hearted; they loved each other as if everybody were part of the same family. They treated each other as their own brothers and sisters. The princess was aware that it was just a dream, but she wished that the dream could, somehow, be real, not just a dream.

The princess woke up with the sun in her eyes. She opened up her eyes and saw a beautiful blue sky, with few white clouds. She heard the sound of the seagulls flying around. Her eyes and ears have been healed during the night. Her brain was not damaged anymore. Except for some small bruises, she was completely healed. She felt peace inside her, but that peace was not destined to last. It didn't take long till the evil entity possessed her again.

"_Did you miss me, princess? Did you think it was over? I still need you and I'll have you."_

"_Oh, no, not again. It was too good to be true..." _The princess had a resigned countenance.

"_Let's get moving, we have many things to kill and destroy today!"_

"_No! Please! Can´t you forget this stupid business of killing and destroying with no reason?"_

"_Of course not! That is exactly what I live for."_

The princess tried to resist, but the evil entity was soon controlling the princess body. The princess looked around and saw that the ship had crashed into a sandbank by the shoreline. She didn't know where she was, but it was not necessary, as the evil entity started dragging her again. From the ship's bow, it was possible to climb down straight on the sand as its lower part was completely buried in the sandbank. The evil entity dragged the princess there and started climbing down to the sand.

The princess found herself in a large mass of land, probably a continent. By the position of the sun, the princess knew she had traveled westward, so she should be in Orakian lands. These lands were unknown to her, she had never been there. The evil entity, though, knew exactly where they were. It sought freedom and was determined to use the princess to help it be freed, but it also was delighted with the idea of feeding itself with the princess hate, so it decided to take a detour from their original destination.

"_Well, you defied my orders yesterday and I made you pay for that. Now you will have a chance to redeem yourself."_

"_What do you want from me? You know I'm not the right person to help you. There are many people over there, greedy, egocentric, who would help you in your evil plans. Why did you have to choose me?"_

"_You are the right person. You are a Layan princess. There is no one like you."_

"_But why do you need a Layan princess? I´m just like every other girl."_

"_You are special for me. But soon you will know. Soon you will know. Anyway, before we go to our final task, I need you for some entertainment."_

"_Please, if that means doing harm to people, don't do it. You know I just can't do any harm to anyone."_

"_I don't need you. I just need your vessel. That is enough for me."_

"_Please, don't. Leave me alone, please, I beg you."_

The princess could only hear the laughter inside her head. She was moving south by the shoreline, over large green plains. High mountains could be seen in the west and a small forest in the south. The princess walked for a long time and felt some pains in her feet and legs, but the evil entity would not let her rest. The evil entity felt pleasure in watching the princess suffering.

The main objective of the evil entity was to complete control the princess, mind and soul. But to be able to do that, it had to become more powerful. The easiest way to become more powerful would be sparking hate in the princess heart and then feeding itself with this hate. The evil entity knew that if there was a way to break such a strong will as the princess will, it would be by making the girl live terrible experiences. The other way to become more powerful in order to completely dominate the girl would be if the seal was broken, so the evil entity would be set free. The evil entity knew she had to try both ways.

After walking some miles, the princess arrived at the outskirts of a small town by the sea. Besides the houses, there was a small harbor, where many fishing boats were anchored. There were some fishing boats at the sea as well. The village seemed to be a peaceful and friendly place. The princess was so tired that she would have rejoiced to find an inviting place to rest, but under the influence of the evil entity, she preferred to avoid contact with other people.

"_Beware, princess! This is an Orakian village! They would be less than happy to learn you are a Layan."_

"_Why did you bring me here so? Why do you do things just to harm me? What have I done to you?"_

"_All the Orakians are evil men. They all deserve to die. We are here to wipe out all this village!"_

"_What?" _The princess was indignant with the evil entity´s idea.

"_I´ve been too gentle to you. You don´t believe my powers. I´ll give you a demonstration of my powers. I can wipe out entire cities and even blow up entire planets if I wanted. Entire planets! Oh, if only you knew..." _The evil entity burst in laughter. _"Why don´t you join me? You could rule this world. You could rule the whole universe! We´d crush any resistance. Either be with us or be dead!"_

"_Your thoughts are disgusting.! You are sick! I´d rather die a thousand times than to do what you propose me."_

"_Yes, hate me! Hate me! I´m sure you will hate me more when you see this village burned to the ground."_

"_No! Please, don´t do that! Stop! Spare all these innocent lives, they didn´t do anything for you."_

"_Fool girl! Do you think I would stop just because you asked me? I wanna kill and I will kill. Do you think I care for you? If it was for me, you´d be dead now."_

"_Anyway, I can´t let you... do that..."_

The princess raised her arms to the sky. A high energy concentration was being formed in the air, over the princess, in a giant electricity ball. The concentration of charged particles was so high that lightning started cracking in the air. The princess was desperate, trying to fight the evil entity and stop that phenomenon. She had never seem a phenomenon like that, it was to her a thing she had only read in fantasy and supernatural books. She was naturally afraid of lightning and the successive lightning cracks were making her shiver. But she had to fight her fear and the evil entity's influence, as she knew that, if that charged energy concentration burst over the village, the village would be entirely charred, including all its inhabitants.

The struggle was very fierce. The princess tried with all her strength and willpower to prevent the evil entity from unleashing all that electric energy over the city. The evil entity was shocked that she couldn´t easily overpower the girl, as it was used to possess and completely dominate its victims. The princess seemed to be getting stronger and stronger at each struggle. The mental fight lasted for a while, with the princess doing her best to prevent the evil force from bursting the electricity ball over the city. The excess of energy made the electricity ball become unstable.

"_Damned girl! How can you be so strong? I´ve broken the resistance of people much more powerful than you before! How can a weak girl stop me?"_

"_I... must... not let... you do... that... Never..."_

"_It is useless. You will die, I´ll find another way to burn not only this village, but this whole world to the ground and then your soul will be condemned to the worst tortures for the eternity."_

"_I... don´t... care... as long... as I know... I´ve made... my best..."_

The electricity ball became less and less stable. The princess kept fighting back the evil entity´s influence and she partially succeeded. The electricity ball burst over her head, sending electric charges in all directions. Many of the discharges hit her body, but they were not so strong to kill her, just to cause some pain. Part of the electricity remained concentrated in the same spot.

"_Damn! Look what you have done! You have just wasted all that energy. Alright, I´ll not raze that village to the ground, but you will still pay for your acts."_

"_I don´t care... just don´t make me... harm anyone..." _The princess was exhausted from the struggle.

"_Let´s make a deal? I´m looking for a sword. You get me that sword I´m looking for and I´ll not make you kill anyone else."_

"_Deal? I know it... must be a trap, because... only treachery... can come from... an evil entity. Though. I have no choice... but to accept. I can´t stand anymore... this anxiety... this fear. I don´t mean any harm to anyone... I don´t know... for how long... I´ll be able... to resist you." _The princess' soul betrayed despair and hopelessness.

"_Right... I´ll not make you kill people randomly for now. But yet, you will pay for disobeying me. Sooner or later you will have to accept that you are powerless to stop me and that I will achieve my goals, like you or not."_

The evil entity started dragging the princess body again, this time to the mountains in the west. The electricity ball followed the princess. The evil entity made the electricity ball discharge electric current continuously on the princess' nerves enough to make her feel a strong pain in each and every sensitivity nerves of her body, but not causing further harm, as she needed the princess alive. The princess contorted her body in pain, rolled on the ground, crying. Her wails of pain were deafening. The pain was so strong that it blurred her senses and confused her mind. Her soul was unable to do anything else, just grieve the pain. The evil entity laughed inside her mind, rejoicing in her suffering.

"_Satisfied? That is what you earned for defying my orders! You alone will suffer thousand times more than all those people would suffer if you had let me do what I intended to do with that village."_

"_Ahhh... th-this... is... so... painful... Help... me... Laya... help... me... overco-com-ming... this..."_

"_No one can help you. Face my anger, damned princess!"_

"_Laya... help... me..."_

The evil entity laughed for a long time inside the princess mind to increase her suffering, but the pain was already too much for her, so her soul didn´t care too much about the laughter. Besides, she was getting used to the evil entity always mocking her suffering. The evil entity tried to drag the princess faster, but, with the pain the girl was feeling, she would go nowhere. She stayed lying on the floor, in a fetal position, crying, trembling, with her body jerking and her muscles suffering involuntary spams from time to time. The electricity current on her brain made her unaware of external stimuli; she just felt pain. The evil entity was not concerned, though, she had time. She rejoiced even more the princess suffering because now she hated her deeply. She waited for hours, till all the energy gathered had flowed through the princess body before dissipating.

"_It is not me who has to hate, it is her who should hate me. I´ve never met someone like her! She must be destroyed. I´m sure I´ll be able to find someone as fit as her for my revenge against the damned Layans and the damned Orakians. I made a big mistake with Laya. I don´t need someone powerful as her, as I´m much more powerful than any human. I need someone who is unstoppable. This woman, if blinded by rage, drowned in hate, turned to evil, would be unstoppable. If only I could really possess the princess soul, oh, then I´d be unbeatable."_


	5. The Layans Seek Their Prettiest Flower

Cille soldiers who were looking for the princess found two strangers lost in the small forest to the south of Cille castle. The strangers looked afraid and exhausted. In fact, they were tired from walking for hours in the unknown woods, fearing an encounter with aggressive wildlife, human predators, poisonous insects, dangerous terrains or hostile humans. And they feared more an encounter with that mysterious and dangerous woman. They were thirsty, feeling pains in their joints, hungry and terrified with the idea of having to spend the night in the wilderness. The sight of the soldiers made them feel somewhat afraid, but they were somewhat relieved as well. If the soldiers were not so hostile, they could get some food, a shelter for the night and some way to return to their homes.

The soldiers were pleased to find the strangers because they immediately suspected the strangers could have something to do with the princess disappearance, as they were clearly foreigners. No one would be roaming inside those woods. The leading officer stopped the strangers.

"Halt! Hands up! Identify yourselves!"

"Oh..." The two sailors slowly raised their arms. They were somewhat shocked.

"Who are you, strangers? Better open your mouths if you don´t want to end injured."

"Well... we are castaway sailors..." The man who had been attacked by the princess said with an unsure voice.

"Where are you from? What are you doing here, in this forest?"

"We were sailing, lost our course and anchored in the southern shores. We were attacked and our boat was stolen..."

"Where are you from, strangers?" The officer was losing his temper.

"From Agoe..."

"Orakians! Guards, arrest them! Let´s take him to the king!"

"Hey... wait..."

The sailors tried to shyly protest against their arresting, but they felt that it would be much more dangerous if they tried to fight or run, as they were unarmed and the soldiers looked to be really excited in arresting them. They were sure now that they were on hostile Layan lands and that made them much more afraid. Their kingdom was not in good terms with the neighbor Kingdom of Shusoran, a Layan kingdom. They frequently engaged in some skirmishes on the border. They knew that the fact of being Orakians was enough to make them be arrested.

The soldiers handcuffed the sailors and took them back to the Cille castle. They tried to not talk in order to not alarm the prisoners about their suspicions, but they were really happy to have found the Orakians. The king was very upset for the disappearance of his daughter and he was putting a lot of pressure in the guards to make them work harder in order to find some hints of his daughter whereabouts. He suspected that she had been kidnapped, so the capture of the Orakians would entertain the king for some days, even if the Orakians were not to be blamed.

As Cille island was isolated, the princess would not have regular ways to leave the island. The soldiers have conducted extensive searches for the princess, but she wasn't found anywhere. The sailors were the most logical option to explain the princess disappearance. Though they didn't really find the princess whereabouts, the soldiers felt they were on the right track and that made them confident enough to not interrogate the Orakians themselves. They knew the king would love to interrogate the suspects himself, so they sent one of the guards ahead to announce the news to the king.

The king was locked in his room, mourning the loss of his daughter, who was not only his only child but also the only relative left on his household. His wife and parents had died many years before. He almost rejoiced when one of the palace guards announced that the soldiers were returning with two suspects. He didn't really rejoice because he felt that ambiguous feeling that only those who had loved ones disappeared can understand. Part of him wanted to know the truth about his daughter, even if that meant that she had been killed, so he could have some peace of mind and not torture himself with everlasting doubt. Part of him wished that she'd never be found, so he could always hold some irrational hopes in his heart that she was alive, safe and sound, leading a happy life wherever she was.

As the soldiers arrived at the castle, the king had already instructed the guards to take the prisoners immediately to the palace, where they'd be interrogated. The leading officer joined the guards to present his report of the arrest to the king. The Orakian sailors were deadly scared; if they were to be taken to the king, they were really screwed. They wondered why their arrest was so important since they haven't done anything apparently wrong in Layan lands. Besides, if it was a common Layan custom to kill every Orakian prisoner, as they believed to be true, they would not be taken to the king. Though the prisoners were not allowed to speak, their faces showed them that they had more or less the same thoughts in their minds.

The prisoners were taken inside the castle. The king was waiting for them inside a poorly-lit chamber. The chamber was menacing, with many weapons and weird instruments inside the weapon cabinets. The king was seated behind a strong wooden desk. The prisoners were taken to the presence of the king. The king's countenance was impassive at the sight of the prisoners. The prisoners became more scared with the odd appearance of the room and the menacing look in the king's eyes. It seemed to them as if they were taken to a torture chamber.

"Here they are, majesty." The leading officer bowed. "Do you want me to report the circumstances of their arrest?"

"It is not necessary." The king dismissed the officer with a wave of hands and turned to the prisoners. "Orakian spies, eh? Better start talking now or you will be rewarded with our special Layan hospitality." The king grinned.

The sailor who was wounded swallowed hard. The other sailor was in shock.

"Won't you say anything, eh? Where is my daughter?" The king is very angry and has his fists clenched.

"I... I... don't know... We.. don't have... nothing... to do... with that..." The sailor who was in shock stuttered.

"Liar! You are a liar!" The king hit the wooden desk and briskly stood up. "I'll ask you just once more. Where is my daughter?"

"Majesty... we don't know... who is... your daughter..."

"Eh? Don't you know my daughter?" The king's voice was filled with sarcasm. "My daughter is the woman you had kidnapped, scoundrels!"

"We... we haven't seen no woman..."

"Wait!" The sailor who was wounded started speaking. "I'll you tell you what happened!" The sailor was angry.

"Really?" The king was surprised by the sailor's reaction, shocked by his impertinence, but tried to keep a cool expression, to show them he had everything under control. "So tell us what happened."

"We were cast adrift in the ocean and, after some hours, we sighted this land. We have landed in this island looking for help. Then a cyan-haired young witch, who was standing by the shore, attacked us and stole our ship."

"Witch? Do you dare to call my daughter a witch?" The king lost his artificial coolness and punched the sailor's mouth.

"Witch! She almost killed me and was sucking my soul from my body! If she is your daughter, then she is a witch! She stole our boat!" The sailor ignored the blood in his lips and shouted back at the king.

"Scoundrel!" The king punched the man again. "If you ever call my daughter a witch, you will die the most terrible death a man can die! Now, guards, take them and show them the special Layan hospitality."

The sailors were held up by the guards and dragged to two wooden boards that were placed in one of the corners of the room. The boards are a bit elevated in one of the extremities. The sailors had their feet strapped to iron bars in the elevated extremities and lain on the board. Guards wrapped their faces with pieces of cloth, covering their mouths and noses. After some minutes of hesitation, some guards returned with large buckets filled with water. At the king's order, the guards started pouring the water over the heads of the sailors, making them feel as if they were being drowned. They struggled to set themselves free from the board, but their effort was futile, as they ended hurting themselves. After half a minute, the guards removed the clothes from their faces in order to let them breath for some seconds and resumed the waterboarding torture. For ten minutes, the sailors were mercilessly tortured. Then, the king ordered the guards to stop. The sailors were desperate, gasping for breath. The guards untied their feet and took them back to the king, forcing them to kneel.

"Well, well, well... gentlemen. Do you have something to tell me?" The king's tone was sarcastic, making the sailors very angry.

"We... don't... have... anything to... add... We have... told you... the truth..." The sailor who talked first answered, frightened.

"Filthy Orakians! You are natural-born liars! Why don't you tell me where did you take my daughter?" The king hit again the desk with his fist.

"Because we don't know where she is! She stole our boat and we don't know where she has gone! Why don't you stop this pointless questions and start looking for her?" The sailor who was wounded by the princess was not afraid of the king and still defied him.

"Damn! These scoundrels will not open their mouths!" The king turned his back to the sailors. "Take them to the dungeons. Maybe some hours there will refresh their memory! If not, give them our special treatment again! I'll not waste my time with those vermin anymore!"

Before they could protest, the sailors were already being dragged to the dungeons. The sailors were desperate, but they were much more weary and hopeless, so they seemed somewhat resigned. They haven´t done anything wrong. In fact, they had been attacked and their ship was stolen by a wicked woman. Now they were being tortured and arrested for crimes they did not commit. But as they were Orakians in Layan hands, they knew they would not be treated with justice and no one would would help them.

The king retired to his private room. He couldn´t stop thinking about his beloved daughter, who was missing. He feared that she could be dead or being tortured, though he could never imagine to which extent she was being tortured. She, who had always been a sweet and kind girl, who was always just and good-hearted, didn´t deserve to suffer. Besides his sadness, he felt a bit of regret of having the Orakians tortured. _"My daughter would never let something like that to happen in this palace. If she knew that there is a torture chamber in this palace, she would never forgive me. But I can´t stand the thought that someone has done harm to the prettiest flower of Cille. My beloved daughter... where are you? I need you! I love you!"_

The king stayed either crying or in a depressive mood for a long time. He couldn´t get any sleep that night because both the sadness and the anxiety. He wanted to discover something, any hint that could lead him to find his daughter whereabouts. He couldn´t stop thinking of all the suffering his daughter could be undergoing while he was seated comfortably at his chair. He would give anything to be on her place, to know she was safe and sound, the same sweet girl as she had always been.

During the night, the soldiers tried to press on the sailors, making them reveal everything they knew, but the sailors stood for their original version, accusing the cyan-haired girl of stealing their boat. The soldiers tried some kind of psychological torture, threatening to kill them, but they were unable to change the sailor´s minds. Soon they came to the conclusion that the sailors had nothing to hide, so they sent the sailors to the dungeons again and agreed on telling the king they gave up trying to obtain relevant information from the sailors as soon as the day had dawned.

When the day had dawned, the chief officer of the royal guard went to the king´s private room and knocked lightly. After one minute passed with no answer, the officer was about to leave. Suddenly, he heard the sound of the door being unlocked. As the door was opened, he met the king with a weary appearance. His eyes were red of crying during the whole night. In all those years, the officer had never seen the king in such a sad state, neither when his wife had died from plague.

"Majesty, forgive me to disturb you. We all share the same feelings as you."

"Thank you for your sympathetic remark, but pious words and empty phrases won´t bring my beloved daughter back again." The king was in a very bad mood. "Do you have something to tell me?"

"Oh, my Lord, we have tried very hard, and when I say very hard, I really mean it. But nothing will change the minds of those damned Orakians. They keep repeating the same story over and over again." The officer was embarrassed. He avoided the stare of the king.

"Damned liars! How can they say that my dear daughter has tried to kill them and stole their boat? They are not only lying, but also mocking us. They deserve a painful and slow death for their impertinence."

"My king, forgive my frankness, but we tried everything and, from my experience, I´m inclined to believe that they are right..."

"What? Are you saying that you think my daughter is a witch who stole their boat?" The king was losing control of himself, so insulted he felt at the officer´s remark.

"No, no, my king, I´d never think something like that of Her Royal Highness Princess Marlena le Cille. That Laya blesses our dear princess! She is surely the purest woman in this whole world."

"So what do you mean?" The king was less irritated.

"I mean that the sailors don´t have anything to do with your daughter´s disappearance. Maybe they were attacked by the person who kidnapped Princess Marlena. Maybe his companions betrayed them and took her away. The leading officer of the patrol which arrested them reported me that the suspects were found exhausted and starving, so I´m sure they are not taking an active part in this plan, if there is a plan."

"Of course there is a plan, otherwise my dear daughter would be by my side now. Well, looks like she has been abducted by Orakians and we are helpless. Looks like I´ve lost my daughter..." The king returned to his depressive mood.

"Well, majesty, I share the grief with you. We will send the sailors to Shusoran and try to exchange them for Layan prisoners of war. If you need something else from me, I´m at your disposition. Now I ask permission to leave." The officer countenance betrayed an urge for leaving the king as soon as it was possible.

"Shusoran... well, I have no better alternative. Could you please send a letter asking for my nephew Lyle to come?"

"Prince Lyle of Shusoran?"

"Yes, I´d like to have a talk with him. With some urgency."

"As you wish, majesty. Anything else?" The officer was anxious to leave.

"Just leave me alone! I know you are dying to leave me. Go now, traitor! You are all a bunch of traitors! You are not worried with the safety of my daughter, you are only worried with the safety of your own jobs." The king turned his back to the officer. "Oh, Marlena... where have you gone, my daughter? Oh, Laya, help my poor child..."

The king remained locked in his room for the remainder of the day. The officer did what the king had ordered him and sent a message for Prince Lyle of Shusoran, asking for his presence. Shusoran was a city in the biggest island of the continent. In the past, it used to be linked to Cille by a sandbank, but the sandbank had sunk in the ocean. It was not a long trip by boat, though. The sailors were taken to Shusoran with the letter.

Prince Lyle, a young man in his late teens, received the news with worry. The letter didn't inform the prince about his cousin disappearance. It was just asking for the prince's presence to deal with most serious matters. The presence of Orakians on Cille, though, was already something to worry about. Though Shusoran guards were used to fight Orakians in small skirmishes in their borders, the sea made Cille virtually unreachable by Orakians. Cille's warships were much superior than any other warship available; they would capture of sink any Orakian ship that approached the mainland. If Orakians were able to sneak into the city, that most probably meant something really wrong was going on.

Shortly after the sunset, a dragon was seen flying over Cille castle. The dragon landed on the roof of the palace and then it wasn't seen anymore. A green-haired man, wearing a white cape, suddenly was inside the palace. Some guards were standing in every corridor and large hall of the palace, as a security measure taken after the princess was kidnapped. The guards were startled by the sudden appearance of the man into the palace, but as soon as they recognized the mysterious man, they let him go unharmed. The mysterious man stopped by one of the guards.

"Where is the king?" The man demanded dryly.

"Oh, highness, he is locked in his private room." The guard was anxious.

The mysterious man left the guard and walked through the corridors. The man seemed to be familiar with the palace, as he walked through the many rooms and corridors without stopping or asking anyone for directions. The guards were uneasy with his stealthy entrance, but they knew the man obviously meant no harm in a situation like that. The man stopped in front of a wooden door and knocked. A hoarse voice came from inside.

"I've already told you to leave me alone!"

"It is me, uncle!" The mysterious man didn't seem concerned about the aggressive tone of the king.

"Oh, Lyle?" The king's tone changed immediately. Soon afterward, the door was open.

"Lyle, dear nephew. You came!"

Prince Lyle was shocked at the seeing the king's face. His eyes were red and his cheeks were wet. It was obvious that he had been crying. His appearance was terrible because of the deprivation of sleep and sadness. He had never seem his uncle in such a state. That meant the problem should be more serious than he expected.

"Please, Lyle, enter the room and take a seat." The king was trying to be friendly, but his face denoted deep sadness and worry.

"What happened, uncle?" Lyle was worried and didn't want to seat.

"Marlena... disappeared..." The king's eyes were wet once more.

"Maia? Disappeared? How is that possible?" Lyle is shocked.

"She just disappeared..."

"But how?"

"I don't know. I've heard her scream... then I found a bloodied knife on the floor..."

"Oh, by Laya! How could such a thing happen inside the palace?"

"I don't know... some people claim they have seen her running through the streets... but then she disappeared."

"By Laya! I can't believe! Poor Maia..." Prince Lyle was shocked.

"We searched for her in every corner of this kingdom... but there were no signs of her... not even a hint..."

"I can't believe... my cousin..."

"Listen, nephew!" The king tried to recompose himself. "I need you for a most important task."

"Really?" Lyle was somewhat surprised.

"Have you seen those Orakians we sent to Shusoran?"

"Yes, I did."

"We are sure they have something to do with my daughter's disappearance. They claim a cyan-haired girl attacked them and stole their boat."

"Maia? Why would she do something like that?"

"I don't know. It makes no sense. No sense at all."

"I really makes no sense. I can´t even imagine cousin Maia attacking someone."

"Of course the damned Orakians are lying! No Orakians ever venture on our lands. Of course these two are lying. They came here on purpose and they are surely linked with my daughter's disappearance."

"So what do you think?"

"Well, we interrogated them, but they wouldn't tell us anything else. We tried to extract more information by force, but even so they would not tell us anything else."

"Extract information by force? Oh, uncle, don't tell me you keep the barbaric custom of torturing the prisoners..." Lyle's countenance is a serious one.

"Who are you to tell me how to rule my own country?" The king got angry his nephew's impertinence. "Well, anyway, that is not under discussion. What I want to tell you is that we really believe that my daughter is in Orakian hands. I wish I could break those damned Orakians in the Catherine Wheel! Then they´d tell me the truth."

"How can you use that name to such a terrible device? You insult my beloved aunt's memory!"

"It wasn´t me that has given that name to it."

"Even so it is sick. Seems like you love the torture device. It is disgusting and revolting!"

"Oh well... let´s resume our conversation. I´m almost sure Marlena is on Orakian hands."

"Well, sounds logical. If she was in Layan lands, she'd be either here or at Shusoran."

"So, I have a special task for you, my dear nephew. Find your cousin."

"Me?" Lyle was surprised.

"I beg you. Find Marlena and bring her back."

"Uncle..." Lyle scratched his head. "I don't think I'm up to this task..."

"I beg you! I let you have everything. Just bring Marlena back!"

"I may try, but, you know..." Lyle was unsure. "There are many dangers around there. All the surrounding lands are Orakian.. I can't promise you I'll be able..."

"Do it! Please, I beg you! I give you anything. If you want to marry my daughter and become the king of both Cille and Shusoran, I'll give you my blessings. Just find her."

"Marrying Marlena?" Lyle was puzzled.

"What is the problem?" The king was frustrated with his nephew's reaction.

"It sounds odd. I've never thought about that."

"Come on, who are you trying to fool? Don't you think I've never seen the way you look at her since she was ten?"

"What?"

"Don't you know that we all have seen you take her to the empty rooms of my palace in order to try to kiss her? She was barely at puberty and you were already flirting with her."

"Uncle!" Lyle was embarrassed. His cheeks were burning.

"Now you come here and tell me you never thought about marrying my daughter. Lyle, I didn't expect treachery from you."

"Hey, wait!" Lyle's tone was one of an angry and embarrassed man. "It is true that I tried to kiss you daughter many times, more times that one would consider sane, as she never surrendered to my attempts. But I was just a teenager, she was the prettiest girl I've ever seen and, besides that, she was also my beloved cousin. Of course I'd feel attraction for her, but that doesn't mean I seriously considered marrying her."

"Really? I thought you would like to marry her, as I know you were not only trying to kiss her..." The king's tone is sarcastic.

"Come on, uncle, sometimes it looks like you live in ancient ages. As I've told you, I was a teenager and it was attracted to your daughter."

"What are you telling me? Attracted to my daughter? What kind of man are you?" The king was getting angry again.

"A normal man. Where do you live, uncle? In the land of fantasy? Come on, as a teenager, of course I'd feel lust for your daughter."

"Lust?" The king was mad.

"Yes, lust. L-U-S-T! Like every man in this country. Every man that lays his eyes on your daughter feels lust for her. You are right when you say she is the prettiest flower of the world, so what would you expect? Get real! You suffocate her! You treat her as if you possessed her, as if she had no feelings, no desires of her own. Can't you see your daughter is a woman? She may feel lust for someone as well. And though I feel lust for your daughter, I've never seriously thought about marrying her. It is not an easy decision."

"What? Are you implying that my daughter is good for your filthy desires but not good enough to marry? How come you come here and tell me that, bare-faced? You talk of my daughter as if she was one of those smarty girls you spend your time with. She is not! She is a princess! She is pure and honored!" The king had his fists clenched and was doing a great effort to not punch his nephew.

"No, you know it is not like that. Stop being a fool. Your jealousy only harms you and her. Luckily, for you, she is very prudish, but it would still be alright if she wasn't. Maia is sweet and kind girl. I don't doubt her qualities as a wife, a mother. Besides, you are the one who is trying to sell her."

"What?" The king was so shocked that he became speechless.

"Hell, yeah, you are offering her to me and you don't know even if she wants to marry me or not. You are just using her as part of a negotiation."

"Wha...?" The king was too shocked to say anything.

"You know I love my cousin, but to marry her is a completely different matter. It is not something that can be decided like that. You treat her as if she was an object!"

"Fool! I know you have other women in your mind! That is why you don't want to have my daughter. You know I've always considered you as the best suitable husband for her, but now I'm starting to change my mind. I don't want my daughter to marry such a pervert."

"Enough! I'll be looking for my cousin because I love her and I'm deeply worried about her safety. As for you, uncle, you are mad. Completely mad. Poor Maia... I'll forgive your insults on the grounds you are too shocked with the last events." Lyle, with a defiant air, turned his back to his uncle and left the room.

"Hey, you boy..." The king tried to protest, but he was both physically and emotionally crushed to keep the discussion going.

Lyle retraced his steps back to the palace roof and disappeared. A dragon could be seen leaving the palace, heading south to Shusoran. Lyle was feeling very sad for his cousin. He was determined to search for her no matter where. He was very upset with his uncle as well. He didn´t want to argue with his uncle, but his behavior was unacceptable. He wondered how his uncle could think so different from his father. And mostly, one thought could not leave his mind. "_To marry Maia... To marry Maia... My cousin... should I?" _

As for the king, he locked the door again and stayed a long time crying. He was not crying only because of his daughter's disappearance. He was crying because his nephew's words had a deep impact on his weakened spirit. He started considering alternatives for the princess' disappearance. "_Could it be that she ran away with someone else? I can't stand the thought. I can´t even imagine my little daughter, the purest girl in the world, feeling lust for a man, a commoner, an wretched fellow. No, not her. It is impossible, I just can´t accept that. But could my nephew be right about me? I always thought I was doing my best to protect my beloved daughter, but could it be I was just doing her harm? Could it be that I am an utter failure as a father? All I wanted was to protect her from all evil, protect her reputation, her honor, her modesty, her feelings. My dear daughter, my beloved, the prettiest flower in the world... Marlena..."_


	6. The Princess Seeks Peace

After many hours suffering from the huge pains caused by the continuous electric current electrocuting every nerve of her body, the princess' spirits were very low. She felt a strange numbness, her body was tingling. The evil entity resumed dragging the princess' body through the green plains. The princess was feeling so bad that she didn' t really know anymore what was happening to her. The pain she had to endure was too much for her and now the only thing she had in mind was to find a way to attain piece.

The evil entity was not happy, though. It knew that, though it had the complete control over the princess' body, the seal rules prevented it to use the girl to break it. The seal could only be broken by someone who did it by its own will. That meant, though the girl was completely dominated by the evil entity, in the last moment it'd have to set the girl free and hope she'd break the seal by her own will. The evil entity had also realized that she was powerless to inspire hate in the princess, so her strategy would be different from that point.

_"This damned princess will never hate anyone! I'll never be able to feed myself with her hate. I must do something else to achieve my goal. I'll make her suffer the worst pains in order to break her resistance. She is already losing her confidence. If I insist, I may make her break the seal hoping the tortures may end. I can see she is not the same person as she used to be..."_

The princess was dragged to the mountains. The evil entity forced the girl to stop by an opening in the rocks. Though it looked like a natural cavern, it was a man-made passage, that would take the princess closer to the evil entity's destination. The princess felt an unnatural force preventing her entrance in the cave, but the evil entity dissipated the strange force for some time, allowing the princess to get inside. The princess was somewhat fearful of getting inside the dark cavern, but she had to enter anyway, as the evil force was controlling her body. Besides, the princess was not feeling well after the long torture session, so she was mostly unaware of what was happening to her.

When she entered the cave, climbing down some steps, the entrance was sealed. To her surprise, the cave was nothing like she imagined it would be. The cave was a large opening, a hall at least a hundred feet high, hundreds of yards long and wide. The walls were made of shining polished metal. The cave entrance lead to a metal bridge, which extended itself through the large hall in a complex maze. The metal bridge was suspended several meters over the bottom of the large hall by wires made from a material the princess had never seen in her life. The metal bridge floor was in the form of a grid, with translucent hard plastic boards filling the gaps between the metal bars, allowing the princess to see what laid under her. On the bottom of the hall, there were very large machines, emitting such a strong light that they lighted the entire large hall, allowing the princess to see everything perfectly. The machines emitted continuous hum, giving an eerie feel to the place.

The princess took two or three uncertain steps before noticing she was not being controlled by the evil entity anymore, though she could still feel its evil presence near her. She started crossing the metal maze slowly, in a mixture of fear and curiosity. She was not feeling well yet, she had a bit of difficulty to focus on what she was doing. Though she was not feeling the terrible pains anymore, she was still feeling an awkward feeling all over her body, a reflex of the terrifying pains endured hours before. The constant tortures had been too much for the girl to endure and she only sought peace, even if that meant getting the sword the evil entity asked for her.

The evil entity, noticing the change in the princess, was content, but that was not enough to make it satisfied. The evil entity had already prepared new hardships for the princess to endure. While the princess was slowly walking through the bridge maze, she didn´t notice the presence of a large number of monsters inside the cave. The loud hum of the machines muffled the sounds made by the creatures. While walking through one large corridor, the princess was scared by a large pack of blue and pink furred animals, with a horn in the center of their foreheads. The princess tried to run from them, scared, but they were faster than her. The monsters started biting her legs, causing her great pains. She tried to kick them away, but they were too fast for her. After several bites, the pack of monsters disappeared through the corridors. The princess' legs were dripping blood from many wounds, she was feeling great pains again, but she felt a sense of relief when the monsters ran away. What she didn´t know was that the bites were poisonous and that the poison not only prevented her from healing herself, but it would also gradually cripple her health.

Despite the great pains, the fear and the low-spirits, the princess tried to keep advancing through the maze. As the evil entity had sealed the entrance, she knew she had to find another exit. She walked more slowly than before because the pains were harder to endure and now she knew that the cave was not only strange; it was dangerous as well. The evil entity resumed laughing inside her head.

_"Oh, princess, did you think that it would be easy? You haven´t paid enough from your impertinence! You will suffer more and more, princess."_

_ "You betrayed me... but I should expect that... All I want now is peace... Laya, help me!"_

_ "Do you still believe in Laya? She had not helped you before and she will not help you now. You are such a fool, Layan princess." _The evil entity burst in laughter.

"_Laya... don´t forsake me..." _The princess was desperate and cried while praying for her Goddess.

_"How silly you are, princess. If it was not for her, you would not be here. She betrayed me, that witch... But now she is dead, I´m back again and I´m using a Layan princess, her descendant, to help me dominate and destroy this world. I´ll exterminate every Layan. Soon you all will be extinct."_

_ "That can´t be true! That can´t be true!" _The princess was crying. "_Why don´t you leave me alone? What have I done to you?"_

_ "You are a Layan princess, that is enough."_

_ "Why? I´m just a common woman. A weak one. A powerless one. Being a princess means nothing. I´m just like every other girl. Or even weaker."_

_ "I´ve chosen you. I feel pleasure in laughing of your suffering. I can mock both you and that damned witch. How she'd love to learn that her descendant is being attacked, poisoned and killed by her own beasts! I love the irony in all that!" _The evil entity burst in laughter again.

The princess decided to end the conversation and keep moving. The physical pains were already too much to endure; she didn´t need psychological torture as well. She didn´t care about the evil entity´s plans anymore. She just wanted to be released from the evil entity´s dominance and attain peace. She had lost the will to fight against the evil entity. As long as it didn´t make her harm other people, she didn´t care. She only had peace on her mind. She wished she could find the sword the evil entity was looking for as soon as possible. She was sure that the evil entity would kill her immediately after getting the sword, but she didn´t care. Whether she would attain the heavenly peace of the eternal void after death, as least it would mean eternal peace and that was enough for her.

The princess made her way through the maze. Each step was harder than its predecessor for the princess. She was poisoned and the poison started working on her body, causing weakness on her. The maze-like corridors of the metal bridge didn't help her either. She got lost many times, having to retrace her steps back. She was unaware of how much time had passed since she entered the cave. Besides the pain and the poison, she was exhausted and starving, as she had not eaten anything since she had been possessed by the evil entity. She kept advancing nonetheless, though she felt an urge of cowering to one corner and waiting for death to come and take her out of her terrible ordeal.

_"I... I can't... stand it... anymore... Why did you... let if happen to me... Laya? Why are you... deaf to my prayers... now? Of all the people in this world... why me? Why did you choose me... to suffer this terrible ordeal... to suffer what no one else has ever suffered? I know I'm a sinner... but are my sins so great? I've never... killed. I've never... stolen... harmed anyone on purpose... Why should I... suffer that... while... there are people lying... cheating... stealing... killing... torturing... and going unpunished? Oh... Laya... can you hear me? Can't you... have compassion... for your poor daughter? If you can't... save me... spare me from... this terrible fate. Let me die... peacefully. If I... deserve to be... taken to the hell... let me... go, but don't... keep me here... living in this material hell..." _The princess was sobbing bitterly. The sight of the sadness and the despair in her eyes would be too much for any human to endure. _"I... I think it is useless..." _The princess shook her head. "_Maybe they were... all wrong... and... you can't... do anything... Maybe you were... just as powerless... as me..."_

The princess was feverish and soon she started hallucinating. She caught a glimpse of a giant life form, a grayish purple humanoid giant with long fangs in his hands, menacing red eyes and several small heads protruding from its back. The humanoid had an evil gaze and a sarcastic grin on its face. The princess was frightened at first, then felt an extreme disgust for the humanoid form, but soon she was not paying attention to it anymore. She dismissed it as part of her hallucinations. If it was a very difficult task to walk through the maze while sane, now the princess was completely lost, as the could not think logically anymore.

The princess was wandering through the corridors when she saw two strange brown-scaled animals, with horns in their heads, floating on the air, holding a glowing wand each. She dismissed them as hallucinations of her mind. The monsters shot fireballs at the princess, who released loud wails of pain as the fireballs hit her skin, causing severe burns. The princess tried to run away, but the monsters kept shooting fireballs at her. Her dress caught fire and she started rolling on the ground, trying to extinguish it. The animals started biting her, their strong teeth ripping through her skin and flesh. The princess thought that was her end, but the monsters grew tired after some bites and left her, not before throwing another barrage of fireballs at her. The princess kept rolling on the floor, trying to extinguish the fire and she eventually managed to do it.

The princess stayed a long time lying on the ground, breathing heavily. The evil entity laughed at her suffering. The princess didn't care anymore about the evil entity's laughter, but she couldn't stand anymore all that suffering. If she was to die, she was ready for that, she didn't really care. But all the torture she had to endure was too much. She was always left on the verge of death, but then she would be saved, only to suffer more and be tortured even more. As her body grew weaker with the time, she decided to stay lying on the floor, waiting for the death to come.

_"Ah, the princess can't stand it anymore! Poor girl... I laugh at your mediocre existence. Do you think you are of any importance? I'd love to see you dead now, but I love even more to see you suffering. You weakness is shameful! Better start moving on or I'll make sure you will live decades inside this cave, suffering the worst pains."_

The evil entity burst in laughter again. The princess was resigned to her fate. She started wondering if she had not died and all that suffering was part of the eternal damnation she was condemned to. Though she believed to have been a good person, she could never know. The only thing that made her frustrated was that all her prayers for Laya seemed to be unheard. Though she had a less mystic belief in Laya than the average Layan, even so she was like every one else, who starts questioning one's own beliefs when facing a desperate and helpless situation.

As the princess had no alternatives, she resumed her way through the maze. She was feeling so weak that all she could do was to crawl on the floor, like a snail, though she used her arms and legs to push her body forward. The lights coming from the bottom of the large hall caused discomfort to her blurred vision, but she didn't care anymore. She was not trying to logically find the exit for the maze; she'd just move randomly, expecting to find the exit by chance. Plus, the discomfort caused by pain were far bigger than the discomfort caused by light. Her mind wasn't working properly anymore. She couldn't keep focus on what she was doing, she was not fully aware of what was happening in the surroundings. She just tried to dismiss the unending evil laughter inside her mind and to forget about her pains.

The hours passed and the princess still crawled. She was clearly lost in the maze, crawling in circles. For her, it was as if her life was always been like that. She couldn't concentrate very well and she had lost the ability to tell what was reality and what were hallucinations from her mind. The only thing that remained present in her mind was the pain and suffering. She had passed lots of times in front of a set of stairs, but she didn't notice it as her weakness, starvation, fever and pain made her mind wander for most of the time. She took some short pauses to rest and resumed crawling again. After a long time, she finally noticed the set of stairs. She dragged her body in its direction and finally climbed it. It lead to the outside again. The princess was stepping on lands unknown to her.

As soon as the princess left the cavern, the evil entity took control of her body again and started dragging her westward. The unknown land was much like her homeland, with large green plains, some mountains and some forests. The exit cave was in a small mountain range in the format of a horseshoe. The princess walked very slowly through the grassy plains, as she was very weak. This time the evil entity didn't allow her to heal herself; she wanted the princess to be suffering a lot. As the princess was already losing control of her own mind, it would be much easier to make her break the seal of her own will.

The princess advanced through the grassy plains, barely being able to walk. Her mind was lost, fixed in one thought: Peace. She couldn't think in anything else. Pain, starvation and deprivation of sleep were making her go mad. She felt alone, helpless, abandoned by her goddess, hopeless. All that she wanted was to be freed from that torture. She knew that freedom meant death, but she didn't care anymore. She imagined that her health was already so crippled that it would be an even greater torture to keep on living in such a sad state. Between her moments hallucinating, the princess rarely got some lucid moments. Her soul had almost given up her body. She didn't want to live that doomed life anymore.

_"I... don't consider myself... a person... anymore... I don't have any control of myself... I don't ... feel as I'm living anymore... I can't stand living just to feel pains... to suffer... without a reason... without a meaning... Why am I living for? To help... an evil entity? To die... afterwards? Who would... want to... keep on living... this way? Death would be much better than... keep living... this way... There is no one who... could help me... no one... I´m doomed... to suffer... till I die..."_

The princess walked for some time, often falling on the floor and painfully standing up again. The day was dawning. She had spent almost the whole night inside that strange cave. Now, she was walking towards the shoreline. On the way, she started seeing the same giant grayish purple humanoid she had seen while in the cave. It seemed that the humanoid was laughing at her face with all his mouths. Though the humanoid looked real, the princess knew such a thing didn´t exist and dismissed the image as a hallucination, byproduct of her sick mind. As the princess advanced, she felt a new feeling, something inside her chest, oppressing her heart. She considered it an effect of her blood loss or maybe poisoning, as the evil entity mentioned. She was sure that her time in that world was running out and she hoped it would run out as soon as possible.

After two hours, as the sun was higher in the sky, the princess started to see the sea in the horizon. The evil entity was directing the princess to the shore. In a short moment of lucidity, the princess felt a nostalgic feeling, as she loved to stay by her bedroom window, watching the waves crashing down by the shore, coming and going, endlessly. Watching the sea always brought her peace. And it was peace the only thing she cared for, as she had lost everything else. But the sight of that sea didn´t bring her peace. Though it was as beautiful as the sea that washed Cille shores, looking at this sea increased the oppressive feeling inside her chest.

To make things worse, yellow birds started circling over the princess' head. They followed the princess for some time. The princess didn´t notice their presence. Her senses were not working properly anymore, her vision was blurred, her ears were unable to distinguish the sounds; they have become just hisses and hums. Besides, her mind was so exhausted that she didn´t care for anything else. The birds started circling closer to her head and one of the yellow birds took his chances. Coming down, he beaked a wound on the princess right leg. The other birds followed suit. The princess didn´t react, just released loud screams of pain. The birds felt the taste of the poisoned flesh and each one left after just a few beaks. The princess barely caught a glimpse of the birds which attacked her.

The princess was somewhat relieved that the attacks didn´t last long, but her legs were now hurting more than before. If it was not for the evil entity pull, she would not be able to walk anymore. The attack only increased the princess' death wish. _"Look what I´ve become... I´m not living anymore... my body is not worth even as food for birds of prey... Why don´t you make me die? I´m already dead somehow... Just make me die and rejoice... my death..."_

Though the princess was directing her words at the evil entity, the evil entity either ignored her on purpose or was unable to hear her. The evil entity had some plans in her mind. As the princess would need some help, she took the princess to the sea and forced her to wash the blood from her clothes. Though her appearance was pretty battered up, with her dress ragged, her hair in disarray, her countenance was one of a person undergoing extreme pains, it was better to not be soaked with blood. The salt of the sea in her wounds make her aches stronger, but at that time she was so used to feeling constant pain the it didn´t make a considerable difference.

The evil entity kept directing the princess westward, by the shoreline. It didn´t take long till the princess caught the glimpse of a town with a port. The princess felt the oppressive feeling stronger in her heart. Besides, she feared the evil entity would want to harm someone else. As her mind was seriously damaged by the constant suffering, she was unsure if she would be able to stop the evil entity. Most of the time, she was only able to wish she could attain peace. And that meant she wished she was dead. The evil entity took the princess straight to the port. To her lucky, the port was almost empty, for the princess appearance would raise some suspicions.

The princess went straight to one anchored boat by the port. The captain, a middle-aged man with silver hair and silver beard was smoking a pipe, seated on the wooden steps of one of the stairs that took to the piers. The captain was surprised to see the girl and somewhat shocked with her battered appearance. Seeing her confused gaze, he immediately stoop up and directed himself to the girl.

"Good morning. Do you need some help?"

The princess could barely understand what the man was saying and tried to answer, but her mind was so confused that she only managed to stutter. "I... I..."

"Are you feeling well?"

The evil entity realized that letting the princess talk with the man would put its plan on risk, so it immediately possessed the girl´s vocal organs. "Take me to the sunken temple!"

The princess' voice was hoarse and startled the captain, who inquired with a suspicious gaze. "Why? There is nothing to see there."

"I want to go there! Just take me!" The evil entity made the princess embark the ship without the captain´s authorization.

"Oh, well." The captain was feeling confused. "I hope she brings me luck."

The captain followed the princess, who was seated by a corner. The oppressive feeling inside the princess chest was growing and growing. The captain raised the sail and started sailing toward the sunken temple. He tried to start a friendly chat with the princess, but the princess dryly rebuked his attempts with an aggressive "Leave me alone!", so the captain shrugged and kept sailing. He was questioning himself why he was taking that mysterious and rude woman with him, but as he was a very superstitious man and he believed that sailing with a woman in his boat would bring him unexpected luck, he came to the conclusion that taking her for a short ride would not harm him.

But he was completely wrong. The evil entity had plans on her own. As it felt the journey with the princess was coming to its end, it decided it was time to make the princess suffer for the last time. The princess was lost in her confused thoughts and didn´t notice that the captain was staring intently at her. Though her appearance was one of a person that had been suffering for a long time, she was still attractive to the eyes of the captain. Fueled by the evil entity´s influence, the captain had to confront the lustful thoughts the evil entity was inspiring on him with his own moral values. Though the captain was not a bad man, he was not nearly strong-minded as the princess was, so it didn´t take long for the evil entity to control his mind. The captain´s countenance changed immediately, showing that something strange had happened to him.

The captain started walking towards the princess, who was cowering inside the deck, by the rails over the stern. She didn't notice him before he was very close to her. The evil entity had freed the princess from its domain for some time, but her mental state was so frail that the princess didn't even notice that she was free again. When the captain stopped in front of the princess, she looked up, with an inquisitive and frightful gaze.

"Yes?"

"A woman... in my boat... alone... has to pay the fare!" The captain grinned. He had something evil in his eyes.

"Wha... what?" The princess slowly stood up, afraid. She recognized those evil eyes. They were the same eyes of the giant humanoid that appeared on her hallucinations.

"I want you!" The captain grabbed the princess arm with some violence.

The shock made the princess recover some of her mental strength. She was sure it was the evil entity who was commanding the captain. She recognized that hoarse tone. It was similar to the tone her own voice had when she was being controlled by the evil entity. By looking into the captain's eyes, the princess figured out she was not hallucinating about the giant humanoid, she was really seeing the evil entity.

_"No, please, stop!"_

_ "Are you afraid, little princess?" _The evil entity laughed inside the princess mind.

"_We have a deal!"_

_ "How fool you are! Our deal was that I'd not use you to harm the others, not that I wouldn't use the others to harm you."_

_ "I should not had trusted you..."_

The captain tried to throw the princess to the ground, but the princess resisted by forcing her body back to the ship rail, preventing her from losing her balance.

"Please, stop doing that! Stop! Come back to your senses!" The princess struggled against the captain, but she knew her weak body would be easily overpowered. The captain was completely possessed

_"There is a way you can save yourself, princess. I'll help you."_

The evil entity regained control of the princess' free arm. It made her hand move towards the captain's waistline. The princess looked down and noticed what the evil entity was up to. The princess' hand grabbed the handle and unsheathed the cutlass from the scabbard tied by the captain' s waist.

_"Only his blood can save you, princess! Kill him now!"_

_ "Damn! Kill me instead!"_

_ "Why don't you react? He is doing you harm..."_

_ "It is not me, it is you!" _The princess was angry.

_"Hate me! Yes, hate! Hate him! Either you kill him or you die."_

_ "I won't let... it happen..." _The princess was trying to gather all his forces. _"Even if it... will make me... die..."_

The evil entity raised the princess arm holding the cutlass. It tried to bring the cutlass down the captain's head, severing his skull in two, but the princess resisted. The captain was mesmerized, his eyes shot. He was unaware of his surroundings. He shook the princess' arm violently. The evil entity managed to push the princess arm slowly. Tears were falling from the princess' eyes. She was trying very hard to not let the evil entity use her hand to kill the poor captain. The fierce struggle lasted for a while, with the weakened princess having to fight two opponents. She was feeling hopeless. _"If I was not so battered up, I could try to fight better, but looks like I'm powerless to avoid it. I hope that I may kill myself instead of him..." _

As the cutlass blade was just one inch from the captain' s skull, the princess used all her strength to swing her hand in a rapid movement, hitting the captain in the throat with the cutlass handle. The blow was not very strong, but the captain immediately released the grip on the princess' arm. He took his arms to his throat and started gasping for breath. He was suffocating. The evil entity released both from her control, shocked that the princess had resisted her one more time. The princess dropped the cutlass, ran to the captain and held his body. He was passing out. His windpipe collapsed with the blow.

"No, no! I didn't intend to harm you!"

"I'm... dying..." The captain was desperate gasping for breath, but he was unable to breathe.

"No, please!" The princess was crying in despair.

The man passed out, with his face contorted. The princess was desperate. She laid her hand on the captain's throat, trying to find a way to restore his breathing. As the seconds passed, the princess was getting more and more desperate.

The evil entity was shocked, watching the scene. "_What's up with this girl? How can she resist my influence? How can she have such a pure heart? I loathe her! I loathe her! We are almost there, but I'm not confident enough. I think I'll have to kill her and find another fool to help me, this time someone who wasn't got a clue."_

The seconds passed and the princess was more and more desperate, as the captain was breathless. She knew the captain would soon pass away. _"That can't be! No, I don't want him dead. Please... someone... Laya... if you can her me... if you can forgive me... help him. Let me die in his place!" _The princess knocked the man's throat again in a desperate attempt to bring him back. The hit reopened partially the man's windpipe, as her first blow had not been strong enough to crush his windpipe. The man started to breath again, faintly.

The princess laid his body on the floor gently and cowered back to the rails by the stern. She hugged her knees and started weeping, but her tears were of joy. The constant flow of emotions made her suffer a mental breakdown again, but she was feeling peace. The oppressive feeling inside her chest was stronger than ever, but she was relieved that she had survived the ordeal again.

But the evil entity was angry and wouldn't leave the princess in peace. An unnatural high wave appeared out of nowhere and hit the ship, sending the captain overboard.

_"Man overboard!" _The evil entity laughed.

_"No! You devil!" _The princess was desperate. She knew the man was unconscious and would drown.

"_You still have to pay for your impertinence!" _The evil entity laughed.

The princess rushed to the side rails, took one of the lifebuoys that had a rope attaching it to the boat and jumped to the water, taking the lifebuoy with her. She was not a good swimmer, but she managed to reach the point the captain was thrown. He had already started drowning. The princess had to dive in order to catch his arm and pull him back to the surface. It was not easy for the weak princess, but as she was holding the rope attached to the lifebuoy, it helped pulling both to the surface again. The princess, then, tied the captain to the lifebuoy. She had no means to return to the ship in order to pull the man from the water, but, as he was safe for now, she hoped another ship could save the captain or that he'd be able to sort it out as soon as he regained his senses.

_"Stop! Stop! Stop! Why don't you take me to our destination! Stop torturing me, I can't take it anymore!" _The princess was mad with the evil entity.

_"Damn! Why didn't you leave him to die? Why do you have to be always the good girl, do the things right? Why don't you surrender to my power?"_

_ "I don't have anything to do with you. We have made a deal. So, please, take me to the damned sword immediately! I'll take it for you and then you will leave me alone! I can't stand it anymore. I'll do anything, just let me be in peace." _The princess had surrendered. She couldn't take the evil entity's actions anymore. Her mind was completely broken.

The evil entity rejoiced with the princess' words. She felt confident that the princess would break the seal. She started dragging the princess underwater.

"_Hey!"_

_ "Don't worry, that will not kill you. See that temple? It is our final destination."_

_ "I'll drown!"_

_ "You still doubt my powers... I'll keep you alive, as long as you keep your word on helping me."_

The princess saw a huge marble temple resting underwater. The polished marble columns resembled the ones which could be found on the Laya's temples. Its architecture was very much similar as well. The princess wondered if the temple was an ancient sunken Layan temple. As the evil entity dragged her closer to the temple, the oppressive feeling in her heart increased exponentially.

The princess crossed the gates of the temple. She noticed the temple was not a Layan temple, it resembled an abandoned palace. The temple was empty, no marine life could be found inside, not an animal, not a plant. It gave an eerie feel to the place. The evil entity slowly dragged the princess through its corridors, as a strong water current pulled her outside. The princess was astounded by the sight of such place, she felt something really important was lying inside that temple. She had strange feelings on her mind, strange visions. She thought she was hallucinating again. There were images of the giant evil humanoid fighting a tall man, with dark green hair, wearing a cape, wielding a black sword and a very beautiful blonde woman with a ruby on her forehead, wielding a bow. The woman resembled the legendary descriptions of Laya. The oppressive feeling in her chest was so strong that it made her heart race like mad. The princess returned to her feverish state from before.

As soon has the princess had reached the palace's main hall, her heart had stopped. The hall was just a large and empty room with a red stone in the middle. She evil entity dragged the princess towards the stone. There was a black sword carved in the stone. The black sword was exactly like the one the tall man was holding in her vision.

_"This is the sword I need. Please, get it to me. I, myself, can't help you now." _The evil entity's voice inside the princess head was almost gently.

_"I'm already dead, I can't do it..." _The princess was aware that her heart had stopped and that she was only alive because of the evil entity's influence.

_"You can do it! That is part of the deal!"_

_ "I don't think so..."_

_ "I you do it, I'll save your life. I swear."_

_ "It is no use. Why would I want to live in a world dominated by evil?"_

_ "I... I can spare your family, your friends... You could be powerful..." _The evil entity was embarrassed, as she felt the princess would not buy her false promises.

"_Just let me have peace. Leave me to die and that is enough for me."_

The princess grabbed the sword hilt and tried to pull it free from its stone sheath, but she failed. She tried again and again, but her near-death state did not help her. Her body was crushed and her soul was torn. The evil influence was very intense. After her heart had stopped, the evil influence started oppressing her mind. The princess considered the feeling as an indication that she was already dead and, even so, the evil entity would keep oppressing her soul. _"That is not the right way of attaining peace... no... I'll surely die... but it will keep oppressing me... every day... to the eternity... No, I'm doing it all wrong... I'm being selfish... If it is to suffer the torture forever... so be it... I just can't help this evil entity... just to attain peace... because I'll never be at peace..."_

The princess looked down and read the inscription on the floor _"I HOLD DARK FORCE". _She immediately released her grip on the black sword's hilt. Slowly, her body started to be dragged outside the temple by the unnatural water current.

_"What? What are you doing? Go back now!"_

"_You betrayed me."_

_ "Damn! Damn! Damn! Damned princess, you know you are hopeless! You are gone and I'll still live, anyway. It is just a matter of time till I trick someone here again."_

_ "Thanks, Laya... now I've found the peace I sought for..." _The princess countenance was serene. She was finally in peace.

_ "I know a man who has been kept alive for a thousand years on his hate. I'm sure he will help me, he will feed me with his hate. As for you, princess, you will suffer the greatest pains and horrors. I'll always be torturing your soul for the whole eternity. It is just a matter of time for me to annihilate this world and conquer the whole universe..."_

The mind of the princess went blank. She was being dragged outside the temple. An invisible aura surrounded her body.

_"... and I'll never forget you. Never! You were my most formidable opponent..." _The evil entity hesitates. "_... and you will pay for that... for the whole eternity. My greatest horrors will be reserved for you... I'll never forget you... Marlena!"_


	7. Epilogue

"_... Marlena!"_

Two men were walking in a steady pace by the shore. A blue-haired youngster, wearing armor and a white cape was walking in a fast pace, followed by a black haired man, who had a watch and some sheets of paper in his hands. At a certain point of the beach, the black haired man stopped.

"Halt! Your Highness, we have made five miles already." The man checked his watch. "One hour and nine minutes... it doesn´t look good."

"Really? I thought we were walking faster than last week." The blue-haired youngster was a bit frustrated with the results.

"Yes, prince Rhys, but we didn´t. We must return to our previous marks. We had already reached the one hour and five minute mark for five miles and our goal is to do that under one hour."

"I... I don´t know what happened... I´m tired. Whew! This is going to be harder than I thought." The prince was panting. His body showed signs of fatigue.

"Well. We don´t have time to relax! We must walk back those five miles. Better get ready, prince Rhys." The valet showed his dissatisfaction with the prince tiredness.

"Let´s go..." The prince had spotted a white spot in the sand, far away from them. "Hey, what is that?"

"What?" The valet stopped looking at his paper sheets and looked at the direction the prince was pointing.

"That thing on the sand."

"Oh, that must be some trash. Or something lost by one of the boats." The man dismissed the strange thing on the sand and returned to his papers.

"I'm curious. I feel like checking it out." The prince countenance betrayed excitement.

"Prince Rhys... we will get late for your sword training..."

"It doesn´t matter. I will not rest until I check it out." The prince start walking toward the white spot.

"Prince Rhys..." The valet shrugged. "I hope you are not doing that to skip your training."

"Come on, it won´t take more than five minutes!"

The valet started following the prince, who was walking towards the white spot on the sand in a fast pace. After some hundred yards, the object in the sand started having more defined outlines. The prince tried to guess what it could be, but he had no idea. The valet unwillingly followed the prince. As they walked some yards more, the prince started suspecting the object was not really an object, but a body. He became worried.

"Looks like... a body..."

"What?" The valet was surprised by the prince account. "A body?"

"Yes, a body. I need to check it out!"

The prince started running towards the white object. His heart started pounding heavily on his chest, not only because of the physical exercise, but because he grew more and more anxious as he approached the object. Each step made him more sure that it was a body lying on the sand. "_Oh, no, a body? Who could it be? The person must be dead, unfortunately." _The prince started running faster and faster. Soon he noticed that the body was most probably of a woman, as it had very long cyan hair and it seemed to be wearing a dress. _"A woman? Oh no! What could have happened to her? Could it be that she was drowned on the sea? But no one bathes in this place. Could she have committed suicide?"_

The prince couldn't find a reason why, but he was feeling a deep compassion for the unfortunate woman. As he neared her body, he noticed that she was a very young and pretty woman. He felt more sad. _"Look at this unfortunate girl. Why? Why did that happen to her?"_

The prince reached the body and took it on his arms. The valet followed the prince worried, as he had realized the prince was right; it was really a body. The prince felt the woman´s body somewhat warm. _"Oh no, she must have just died. If only I could have saved her..." _After some seconds, he noticed some movement. "_Is she alive?" _He shook her body a bit and noticed the woman was breathing faintly.

_ "_She is alive! She is alive! Go get some help! Run!" The prince ordered his valet in anxious shouts.

The valet ran toward the plains, trying to find some cottage or some plantation where he could find people to help. The prince remained with the girl in his arms. He lightly stroked her cyan hair. "_How she is beautiful! The most beautiful girl I´ve ever seen!" _The prince raised his eyes to the sky and whispered "_Thanks! Thanks! She is alive!"_ He laid his eyes again on the woman in his arms and each second his compassion for her was grew. He didn´t know, but he was falling in love with the mysterious woman.

The woman opened her eyes slowly. She was still confused. Her eyes met the prince face, which had a big smile in it. She smiled back. She was feeling very confused, her mind was blank.

"Are you okay?_"_

The girl´s ears recognized the familiar words and she answered with a faint voice. "Yes, I am..."

_ "_What happened to you?"

"I..." The woman somewhat freed herself from the strange man's embrace and stayed on her knees, staring at him with a confused gaze. "I can't remember... everything is so confusing..."

"Oh, I can understand." The prince gave a reassuring smile to the woman. "Where are you from?"

"I... I just don't know... oh!" The woman put her hands over her temples.

"What are you feeling?" The prince became worried.

"Oh, nothing... it is just that... I can't remember anything. I don't know even who I am..."

"Don't worry." The prince was worried, but tried to comfort the girl. "You are safe now. I'm Prince Rhys, of Landen. I'll take care of you."

"Thanks." The woman blushed.

"I'll take you home. Can you walk?"

"I... I don't think so... I feel as if I wasn't able to stand up... I feel weakness... dizzy..."

"Don't worry. I will carry you, if you don't mind it, my lady." The prince was grinning playfully at the woman.

"Of course not." The woman smiled back.

The prince took the woman in his arms and started moving slowly towards the same direction his valet has taken before. By that time, the prince had already completely fallen in love with the mysterious woman. "_Her soft and warm body, her beautiful smile, her eyes... I've never seen a woman so pretty in my whole life! Her sweet and innocent air... _He noticed also that her ragged dress was made of the purest silk and cotton. She also wore a golden belt and a silver diadem, both embroidered with precious gems. "_She has a royal air over her... I wonder who she is..."_

_ "_Wait." The woman suddenly shouted, taking her right hand to her right temple.

"What?" The prince was startled. He was abruptly taken from his passionate thoughts.

"No... there is something... hammering on my head... a name..."

"A name? Could it be your name?" The prince looked less worried.

"Maybe... well, I think it is... Marlena..."

"Marlena? What a beautiful name! So, well, pleased to meet you, Marlena." The prince chuckled playfully.

"The pleasure is all mine, your highness." The woman grinned back.

As the prince carried the woman to safety, the woman rejoiced. She didn't remember anything of her past, but her name. But she felt as if a great weariness had waned. It is as if she had been oppressed by a strong force before and now she felt free from the grasp of that force. She felt comfortable in the arms of that unknown man.

She was in peace, the peace she longed so much for.


End file.
